Engine Coolant loss help

[PaulH13]

Hi everyone i know there are other similar posts on the forum regards this issue but i dont want to confuse the original post with people giving advice etc when there maybe multiple issues all similar etc

2007 RS4 B7 82000 Miles weekend car only

went out on friday evening for a short drive and was stuck in normal commuting traffic temp reached 92 and then the car was engulfed in steam from underneath that car so pulled over straight away to see a trail of coolent behind and a pool gathering under the car opened to the bonnet to assist in the cooling department

And waited for the rac to arrive couple of hours later they turn up to say they cant do anything here we will arrange a recovery but on inspection the leak seems to be from between the engine/bulkhead on the passenger side but no room to see anything properly

we have just spoken to our local garage where we had it dropped off they are not a specialist or anything just a MOT station brakes exhausts that sort of thing put it on a ramp and added water and it is pissing out but from the back of the engine he cannot see where from and he says the engine may need to be dropped and is a bit scared of taking the job on as it may be out of their depth

Please help guys only had the car afew weeks and the missus is pissed

Ps excuse the grammer and punctuation

[mikep99]

Not a loose pipe from the expansion tank?

EDIT - or even a split expansion tank? They deteriorate underneath but are easy to change..

[PaulH13]

i dont know mate all i know is what i have put in the op and the garage have put the fear of god in me i maye have to get it recovered from them to a independant as they are saying the engine may have to be dropped or removed ??

[mikep99]

check under the expansion tank to see if its wet and also around the 2 pipes going into it.
thats what i'd start with...

[PaulH13]

Cheers i would like to think my local garage would have already done this they have put it on a ramp and removed the undertray but thats it i think i just think they are scared of going any further .

[mikep99]

do you have any specialists local to you?
i'm sure others will post here with ideas but if the problem cant be identified then a visit to a specialist would be advised.
i wouldn't put too much faith in your local garage from what you've said.

[PaulH13]

hi i have 2 that are local if anyone has any prev experience with them that would be good

http://www.autodeutsch.co.uk/index.asp
http://nigeltravis.wixsite.com/nigel-tr ... i/services

[Lukes3]

Yeh look at the tank first they crack underneath.

[PaulH13]

No such luck i'm afraid it seems that under the expansion tank low down between the firewall and the back of the motor. There is a coolant pipe that has either failed or similar and i am now waiting for it to be collected from my local friendly garage that i have know a long time to a Indepandant specialist who i am sure will be more than happy at emptying my piggy bank my local garage seems to think the engine will need to be dropped or gearbox removed at least.........

[RS4SA]

No such luck i'm afraid it seems that under the expansion tank low down between the firewall and the back of the motor. There is a coolant pipe that has either failed or similar and i am now waiting for it to be collected from my local friendly garage that i have know a long time to a Indepandant specialist who i am sure will be more than happy at emptying my piggy bank my local garage seems to think the engine will need to be dropped or gearbox removed at least.........

I would look at the below Pipe fittings first. It's a drastic move to remove the engine before knowing where the leak actually is. I had this pipe leaking on me due to clamp failure. Not a major leak but irritating as hell. A mate of mine had the same problem but his just dumped all the fluid, similiar to yours, and it turned out to be the same problem, in his case the clamp just failed completely.

See pic's below, tricky to get to it but definitely don't need the engine to be removed. If that's not your problem then perhaps it's something more serious that might require an engine pull but I would need some serious convincing that there is absolutely no other way.

[PaulH13]

Thanks for all the replies peeps it turns out it was a coolant pipe at the back of the engine between the firewall and engine which had failed the guy at the garge had said he had done a fair few RS4's with coolant issues and he had it all repaired within 2 hours at a cost of £140 including parts and labour a bargain considering the alternatives .
The original garage which had diagnosed the engine removal was shocked and a little embarrassed when i turned up a couple of days later with the car as he was convinced it was a engine out job .

[Spwong]

FWIW I had a different kind of coolant leak that resulted in an engine pull. After living with slow coolant loss over many winters and after many dealer pressure tests that said everything was fine, I asked another dealer one more time to take a look. An older tech figured out it was the short coolant pipe (parts 079-121-071-CT and 079-121-071-DA and their seals) that runs through each rear cylinder covers that failed. They connect to the rear coolant manifold, behind the covers - not visible from outside. The small coolant would leak would be consumed by the engine or exhausted out and I would never see it on the engine nor would it drip to the floor. (I hope this is not the same pipe and that my engine didn't need to be pulled!)